Would he take Portland to the next level?
The Portland Trail Blazers’ season is over following their playoff series loss against the San Antonio Spurs, but that also means offseason reports around Portland’s potential plans are officially in full swing.
And the most recent buzz would indicate the Blazers may have interest in Giannis Antetokounmpo.
As reported by Jake Fischer, new owner Tom Dundon has been in the headlines for various reasons since taking over as majority owner late in the recent regular season. But it looks like he’s ready to be aggressive, and Fischer reports that Dundon’s first offseason in charge could include a push for Antetokounmpo.
That would be a massive move for Portland.
Antetokounmpo obviously has familiarity with Damian Lillard from their time together with the Milwaukee Bucks, and if the Bucks ever did decide to hit the reset button, it would take significant capital to get that kind of trade done. Milwaukee would need picks and young players to build around, but not just any young players. It would need young star-caliber players, or at least players with real star potential moving forward.
That kind of package would obviously gut the Blazers’ depth a bit. But if Portland could swing for a player like Antetokounmpo and immediately become a premier Western Conference team, the franchise would have to strongly consider it. From there, the Blazers could continue to fill out the roster through free agency, veteran additions and smaller moves around the margins.
Antetokounmpo won’t be the only veteran star the Blazers are potentially connected to this offseason, especially if the goal is to take a huge step forward quickly. But right now, it looks like he could at least be a legitimate option.
And for a Portland team that suddenly has new ownership, young talent, tradeable contracts and a clear desire to accelerate the timeline, that’s a significant development.